Vietnam Part 2: Tu Lan Cave (Feb. 21-22, 2014)

In the middle of our trip to Hanoi, we did a cave tour.  Doing the Tu Lan caving trip was one of the best experiences we've ever had!!!  My dream was actually to do the Son Doon Exploration but it was for 6 nights and cost $3,000 per person.  Maybe next time!  :)

Our trip included: Phong Nha, Tan Hoa, Hung Ton Cave, Tu Lan Cave, Hang Ken Cave.

Our journey started with an overnight train ride from Hanoi to Dong Hoi.  We were in a sleeper cabin with two other people.  I am glad they wanted to sleep the whole time because we sure did.

In the middle of the night, the train stopped for about two hours.  We thought it was normal and didn't think anything of it.  The only problem was that there are many stops along the way and it wasn't announced which stop you were at.  When it was around the time for our stop, we got out of bed and prepared to get off.  Twenty minutes later, the train still didn't stop.  After asking several workers, we found out that we were going to be about two hours late to our destination.  We panicked because our cave tour was set to leave in the next three hours and we still had to take a cab for about 30 minutes.  We were definitely cutting it close.  Long story short, we made it on time and the cave company was well aware of the Vietnam train delays.

When we go tour destination, the caving company gave us "hiking boots" and a waterproof bag to put our belongings in and we set off.  It was just the two of us and our guide.  Awesome!  The high was in the low to mid 70s and we had to cross a couple of streams and rivers.  Yes, it was pretty cold.  Normally, this trip includes swimming through caves and climbing mountains on the first day and a mixture of the same on the second day.  However, since it was slightly chilly, we only climbed on the first day and hoped for warmer weather for the second.  We climbed for a while and had lunch at the mouth of one of the caves.  Then we hiked for a few more hours, still crossing water along the way.  We got to camp and two porters cooked dinner (BBQ) and set up camp for us.  We were in our tent by 7:30 pm that night because we were just so exhausted from climbing.

The next day, the sun came out and it warmed up just a bit.  Instead of doing a lot of climbing, we mostly swam through the caves.  The water was freezing but it was totally worth it!  We ended the second day by having lunch at a homestay.  Then it was another sleeper train back to Hanoi.

Trekking across peanut and buffalo fields to the Rao Nan River.

Trekking across peanut and buffalo fields to the Rao Nan River.

Trekking across peanut and buffalo fields to the Rao Nan River.

Having lunch at the mouth of a cave.

In a cave.

In a cave.

Cave spider.

Dinner.

Getting into freezing water.

Swimming in freezing water in a cave.

Our porters.

Below is a picture called Conquering an Infinite Cave.  It was in the January 2011 issue of the National Geographic.  It's a giant cave column in Hang Ken Cave.  The two pictures below the National Geographic picture are the pictures that I took of the exact same thing.  So maybe my camera isn't as good as the professional - oh well!  Haha!

Vietnam Part 1: Hanoi (Feb. 18-24, 2014)

Maybe we didn't give Vietnam much of a chance.  I mean, we only stayed in Hanoi.  But, our impression of Vietnam is not that great.  We were told that Hanoi could easily be done in one day.  I didn't believe those people, but I definitely should have.  My advice - visit Hanoi for a day or two and then move on.  We didn't go to Halong Bay or Sapa (two places I really wanted to see_ because we spent a good chunk of money on our cave trip (post to come).  I would like to go back and explore other parts of Vietnam to give it a chance, but we were not impressed with Hanoi.  Here's what we did on our trip.

We explored the Old Quarter.  Motor bikes were everywhere in the Old Quarter - it was tricky trying to cross the street.  You pretty much had to take a deep breath and just go for it.  It was like playing a human game of Frogger!  We were told that the following week, either parts of or all of the Old Quarter would be vehicle-free.  Man!  We just missed it.

We visited Hoan Kiem Temple and Hoan Kiem Lake.

We took a 3-hour, walking food tour around Hanoi.  I highly suggest taking a tour.  We took our tour on the first full day we were there to get a feel for the food and the area.  We used the tour group Hanoi Street Food Tour.  I was so full by the end!  Two other couples were on our tour; we had so much fun with them.

We saw Thang Long - Hanoi Imperial Ancient Citael (Flag Tower, Doan Mon Gate, Kinh Thien Palace, Back Pavilion, Northern Gate, and an archaeological site).

We went to the Temple of Literature.

We took an overnight train from Hanoi to Dong Hoi for our cave trip (post to come).

After our cave trip, we got a massage with hot stones at NQ La Sante Spa.

We also went to Hoa Lo Prison, but we didn't take any pictures.

While in the Old Quarter, we were able to buy new shoes, backpacks, and hiking gear for really cheap.  Yes, everything was knock-offs, but you can't beat it for the prices!

We also just spent a lot of time sitting around drinking coffee or beer, people-watching, and taking in the city.